Rumbelle FanFic: Call Upon Him & He Shall Surely Answer
by Pandicakes
Summary: Belle was the messenger who called upon the Dark One's help in order to save the Kingdom of Avonlea from the growing threat of ogres. This FanFiction explores the "unseen" moments between the beloved Rumplestiltskin and his beautiful maid, Belle whilst still sticking true to the majority of real (or 'canon') events from the TV show. I hope you Rumbelle Shippers enjoy!
1. Chapter 1: The Call

The call was all too familiar to Rumplestiltskin. Someone somewhere wanted to make a deal.

With ogres moving in on the Kingdom of Avonlea, he hardly needed to guess who was calling. In a puff of smoke, he appeared amongst some trees in a neglected forest. It wasn't uncommon for the Dark One to temporarily hide away from the caller. Observing his surroundings, he was ensuring there was not an alternate motive to the purpose of their call. When contempt with his own safety, he focused in on the person standing alone, awaiting his arrival.

To Rumplestiltskin's surprise, the caller was a woman. She was wearing a large cloak, in a failed attempt to hide herself. ' _Two can play at that game, my dear_ ' he giddily thought to himself as a black cloak surrounded his figure, covering every inch of skin and engulfing his face in darkness.

The woman began pacing now, crunching the falling leaves as she walked back and forth.

"You'll wear yourself out, Dearie!" The high-pitch voice came from a branch above her head. She gasped and tossed her head backwards, her hood sliding off her head. Her wide eyes stared directly up at him, blue and deep and beautiful. Momentarily stunned by her beauty, his playful remarks died on his tongue.

The woman cleared her throat whilst taking a couple of uneasy steps back, attempting to recompose herself.

"I was afraid you wouldn't come." She was standing still now, waiting for his response.

"You should be afraid I did". His threatening words came from right behind her this time, as nothing but a sharp-toned whisper. Rumplestiltskin watched her body tense at their proximity, knowing she felt his breath on her skin.

"Can you stop appearing like that, please?" There was no trace of fear in her voice. ' _Foolish girl_.' She was even being polite. Rumplestiltskin couldn't remember the last time someone was genuinely polite towards him. Deciding to abide by her request, he stepped around her.

"What's your name, Dearie?" As he walked, he grew more grateful to be hidden under his cloak. Her beauty was so striking and he could still smell the lavender scent of her hair. She lifted her chin up proudly. "My name is Belle, Belle of Avonlea".

"Forgive me, I was unaware I was in the presence of Royalty!" He shrieked mockingly, taking an exaggerated bow. "And what does the Pwetty Wittle Pwincess want from me?"

"My Father is a good man." Rumplestiltskin snorted. Belle frowned, "But a proud man. He would sooner let our Kingdom fall than ask for help."

"You've come for my help then have you, dear?" Belle coulf hear the grin in his voice.

"I have. The ogres came. We- we're dying, can you save us?" Despite trying, she couldn't hide the desperation in her voice, "I can make a promise of gold-"

"Dull!" He was seemingly loosing his patience. "This is all so dull." He sighed, "I'll get back to you". And just like that he was gone.


	2. Chapter 2: The Forest

**Chapter 2: The Forest**

Rumplestiltskin reappeared at the Dark Castle. Despite what he had said, he didn't leave because he was bored. He left because she was unsuccessfully trying to look under his hood and that was unsettling. The sudden shame in his appearance angered him.

Attempting to clear his head, he wondered over to his spindle and began his familiar routine of spinning straw into gold. A few hours passed and Rumplestiltskin still had Belle on his mind. Frustrated that he couldn't concentrate on anything else, he decided to revisit the forest.

He appeared atop a branch in a tree and had a look at his surroundings. A figure bellow caught his eye. It was Belle.

Rumplestiltskin froze, wondering if she had noticed his sudden arrival. It seemed she hadn't. He was all too pleased to have made the decision to appear atop a branch and had no intention of making himself known. ' _Coward'_ echoed in his head as minutes went by, but all he could do was watch her.

She was sat down on a log, humming a little tune and rhythmically fumbling with the leaves on the ground. Rumplestiltskin toyed with the idea of giving away his position, ' _The fright she would get if I jumped down at her feet right now._ ' Ultimately his curiosity won over and he stayed perched upon the branch, wondering how long she'd planned on staying there awaiting his return.

It took until dusk was beginning to creep over the landscape before Belle finally gave up. She slowly raised herself up from the log and began making her way out of the forest. The Dark One had "defeated" her without even lifting a finger, and this brought him great delight.

As she brushed off the dirt from her cloak, she looked around one last time for any signs of him. ' _I never specified when I'd get back to you, Princess_.' And with that joyous thought, Rumplestiltskin went back to the Dark Castle and wondered what he'd ask for in return for saving all the measly little lives of Avonlea from the growing threat of ogres.


	3. Chapter 3: The Kingdom of Avonlea

**Chapter 3: The Kingdom of Avonlea**

Rumplestiltskin kept a close eye on the ogres from that day onwards, waiting for the moment that the Kingdom would be so desperate that they'd have to agree to the terms of the deal he'd come up with. Belle had called upon him multiple times since, but he refused to answer her calls. Rumplestiltskin was waiting for the King himself to plead help from the vicious and cynical Dark One.

The moment came sooner than expected. The ogres made a massive advance towards the castle itself, destroying all farmland and households in their path. Rumplestiltskin heard that all too familiar call and knew that today, he wasn't going to come home empty handed.

He excitedly appeared just in front of the doors into the ballroom that served as the makeshift war room. Rumplestiltskin listened at the door. They'd seemingly lost all hope. The king mentioned something about ogres wanting to crush them between their teeth. ' _A motivational speech, Sire_ ' Rumplestiltskin mockingly thought to himself. His mocking ceased the moment he heard her voice, "He could be on his way right now, Papa."

' _Even after I left her stranded in that forest for hours she still hoped I'd come to rescue them? What is with this woman?_ ' He hesitated for a moment, wondering if he should put that cloak back on for Belle would be able to see him. No, he'll face her and everyone in that room as the monster he was.

A monster that always had a trick or two up his sleeve. Grinning wildly, he knocked at the grand doors before disappearing from the corridor and reappearing in the back of the ballroom. Once he had seen the King's chair, he immediately lounged himself upon it in a lax manner.

He waited until they'd opened the doors revealing no one, "Well, that was a bit of a let down." Watching them all whirl around at lightning speed was worth it. After their original surprise, he kept teasing, "You sent a message? Something about, hmm "Help, help. We're dying. Can you save us?" He successfully made Belle seem unimportant, 'just a messenger.'

A young man had his sword defensively pointed at Rumplestiltskin, in a pathetic attempt at a "threat". Rumplestiltskin hopped up from the Great Chair and smacked the sword down with one hand, sounding a little more serious this time. "The answer is… Yes, I can."


	4. Chapter 4: The Deal

**Chapter 4: The Deal**

Rumplestiltskin had everyone's attention. He noticed Belle was watching every move he made with curiosity as he walked the ballroom floor, only looking away to check on her father's reactions. She was worried. Belle had been in the Dark One's proximity before, and alone at that, without fear or worry. Could it be she was worried _for_ _him_?

"So you've got ogres." He wondered over to the dining table with the map of the kingdom painted on, "It happens." There was a storybook on the table, which he picked up. Belle took half a step towards him. It's clear that the book is hers. ' _Her Handsome Hero? What utter nonsense_ ' he thought to himself as he began flipping through the pages.

"They're fun in adventure stories," he slamed the book shut, "but in real life they pull your legs off!" His lighthearted remark made the King wince.

"You've faced them?" The questioning came from Belle, "In battle?" Rumplestiltskin took the opportunity to show off. He put down the book and shrugged nonchalantly, "Oh, I might have been in the Ogre Wars."

His attention went back to the rest of the room. "Yes, I can protect your little town." Circling around the table, he pointed a finger at the King. "For a price."

The King takes a few strong steps towards the Dark One. "We sent you a promise of gold-"  
"Ah," Rumplestiltskin had been expecting that, "now you see, erm, I uhh, _make_ gold." The Dark One hardly ever passes up an opportunity to show off his abilities, whether it's by actions or words.

He took a step towards the King. "What I want is something a bit more special." The King was unmoving, dreading what will be asked of him. "My price," Rumplestiltskin's gaze focused in on Belle. "Is her."

Belle stood her ground, putting on a brave face. Her father however, panics, "My- no- my daughter is not-"  
"The young lady is engaged. To me." The young man with the sword spoke at last. His statement made Rumplestiltskin chuckle. He walked past the man and further up the ballroom as he replied.  
"I wasn't asking if she was engaged. I'm not looking for _love_. I'm looking for a caretaker," he span around, facing them once again, "for my rather large… _estate_." He looked over at the King and sternly stated, "It's her or no deal."  
The King was appalled by his sly euphemism and demanded that he leaves.  
"As you wish." Rumplestiltskin says nonchalantly as he swaggered towards the doors, ' _you're going to loose her either way, to me or to the ogres._ ' he sadistically grins to himself as he headed out the room.

 **Author's Note:  
** **Thank you so so so much for getting this far into my story. I know the chapters are only short but this is my first FanFiction and I am a little nervous about this whole ordeal.**

 **As you can see, I've attempted to implement the scenes from the show and the script into my story whilst still keeping my own twist on the storyline. Next chapter will be when the deal is struck, so look forward to that and review if you can! Thanks again! xox**


	5. Chapter 5: Her Choice

**Chapter 5: Her Choice**

"No. Wait." Belle's voice stopped him in the doorway. He turned to face her, a knowing smile on his lips. She steped up to Rumplestiltskin and looked him right in the eye, unflinching. "I will go with him." He squealed with delight at his victory.

The fiancée and father attempt to disallow it but she was headstrong. "No one decides my fate but me. I will go."  
"It's forever, Dearie" Rumplestiltskin was checking she knows what she was getting herself into: Eternity as his servant.  
"My family? My friends? They will all live?" She's also checking he knows what he was getting himself into.  
"You have my word." His words were genuine and she knew it.  
She swallowed hard, "Then you have mine." Excitement grew in his chest. "I will go with you. Forever." And with that she finalized the verbal contract.

"Deal!" Rumplestiltskin was beside himself with glee. 

The King began pleading with Belle, "Please, you can't go with this… Beast."  
Rumplestiltskin feigned offence, never once letting his real emotions show through.  
Belle addressed both her fiancée and her father, "It's been decided."  
Rumplestiltskin tool a step forwards and pointed at her head, "You know, she's right. The deal is struck." He emphasized the last words by striking the air with his hand.

The despair on the men's faces spoke volumes as the room fell silent. Rumplestiltskin couldn't resist tormenting them one more time. "Oh. Congratulations on your little war!" and with one last chuckle, he placed his hand around Belle's waist and ushered her out the doors, every inch the cocky 'beast' he was attempting to be.

Once out of sight of the ballroom, he grabbed Belle a little tighter and with no forewarning, he sent them to the edge of a mountaintop. Belle gasped at the sudden transition.

"Watch your feet, Princess. We wouldn't want you tumbling down the mountain now would we?" He snickered. Belle said nothing. Looking across the landscape, her eyes caught the only bit of architecture in the valley. A neglected and broken down castle was situated upon a distant hilltop.  
"Do you like your new home, hmm, Dearie?" He waved his arms towards the castle. She said nothing once again. Rumplestiltskin wondered what she was thinking about. If all had gone according to plan, it was that there's nowhere to run if she tried to escape. The hopelessness on her face told him it had worked.

He was contempt that his intentions were realized so he grabbed ahold of Belle once again and sent them inside the walls of the Dark Castle.

Rumplestiltskin made his way across the dinning hall. He waited impatiently for Belle to reluctantly follow him down into a large dark corridor of damp stone.

"Where are you taking me?" Her curiosity always seemed to get the best of her.

At the end of this corridor was a heavily reinforced door. "Let's call it your room." With a swing of his hand the door opened wide and he gestured into the inky blackness beyond its threshold.

Belle stared into the darkness, "My room?" she asked in disbelief.  
"Well, it sounds a lot nicer than dungeon." With that, he shoved her inside and slammed the door. She attempted to protest but he only chuckled and walked away with a giddy skip in his step.

 **Author's Note:** **  
Another short but sweet chapter. I'm attempting to keep each one about 500w each so that they are quick for you to read!  
I just want to add that in the chapters to come, I'll be playing around with the TV shows timeline of events so please try and not be upset with me mixing and mashing the TV show scenes together and in the "wrong" order.  
Thank you for reading, have a good day! xox**


	6. Chapter 6: The Pillow

**Chapter 6: The Pillow**

Rumplestiltskin was back at his spindle, completely lost in thought. He snapped out of it when the basket besides him overflew and covered his feet in golden thread. He had been spinning for hours. That should have given Belle enough time to get used to her cell.

As he made his way down the stairs, a sound caused him to stop dead in his tracks. She was crying. There was rawness to it, the pain and loneliness was still an open wound. It came out like an uproar from her throat and was without sign of stopping. He reconsidered going to visit her and instead he went up to his tower to work on some potions that he was running low on.

The sound of her crying echoed through his head as he worked. Rumplestiltskin envisioned her in the small, damp space, darkness consuming her frail form. He couldn't shake this feeling of concern for her no matter how hard he tried.

As the days went on he kept working on his potions and his schemes. His concentration was beginning to suffer badly though and unfortunately for her, he was not a patient man and his patience was wearing thinner and thinner by the hour.

His breaking point was when he sat down to spin one evening but couldn't think of a single other thought than Belle crying down in her cell. Groaning in dissatisfaction, Rumplestiltskin made his way down to the dungeon.

He opened the reinforced door effortlessly and entered the cell. She was lying down, but got to her feet as he came in. "When you so eagerly agreed to come and work for me, I assumed you wouldn't miss your family quite so much." He tried to hide the frustration in his voice, but still ended up sounding impatient.  
"I made my sacrifice for them. Of course I miss them, you beast!"  
"Yes, yes, of course." He calmed down a bit, hurt by her insult. "But the crying must stop. Night after night! It's making it very difficult for me to spin." Rumplestiltskin attempted to explain why, "You know, I do my best thinking then."

Belle just looked at him with utter disgust. He decided to try and tame her with a peace offering of sorts. "Here," A beautifully embroidered cushion appeared in his hand, "Perhaps this will help?"  
"For me?" Belle asked, calming down.

"Not quite so beastly now, am I?" Rumplestiltskin hastily threw the gift at her and headed towards the door.  
"Maybe now I can actually get some sleep." She retorts.

Still hurt by her previous insult, he had to have the last word, "No, no, no, no. It's not to help you sleep, Dearie." He let his frustrations out this time. "It's to muffle the cries so I can get back to work!" And with that, he departed, slamming the cell door behind him.

 **Author's Note:** **  
See what I meant with the mixing and mashing of scenes? In the TV show, Robin Hood makes his first appearance now. However, that isn't the case for this FanFiction! Keep Reading to find out why!**


	7. Chapter 7: The Cup

**Chapter 7: The Cup**

A week had gone by since the deal had been struck, but Rumplestiltskin was hesitant at putting Belle to work. He had countless magical objects that could be dangerous, or even fatal in the wrong hands and he certainly didn't want his new found help to get injured on her first day on the job.

After taking some of the most dangerous objects into his Dark Vault, Rumplestiltskin made one last check of his surroundings before deciding that if she were going to be foolish enough to harm herself, perhaps she would deserve it.

As he approached the dungeon cell, he noticed Belle's silence. ' _Blissful_ ' the imp thought to himself as he swung open the cell door in an extravagant manner. Belle jumped to her feet. Her eyes were still swollen and red, it seemed she still spent a lot of time crying. The knowledge that she was trying to stay quiet now made him internally wince. He may be 'beastly' but he didn't want to worsen her already horrid experience, no matter what it may seem. The Dark One had spent many centuries alone and his social finesse had massively faded with time. It was now almost non-existent.

"Follow me, Dearie!" He avoided her eye as he spun around and made his way back up to the dinning hall, Belle swiftly at his heels. "Time for a little tour, your majesty."

She walked in almost complete silence throughout the tour of the castle. He took her to various broken down study rooms, unused bedrooms, staircases, and more. His child-like giggles and excessive hand gestures had a calming affect on Belle he noticed. She did look daunted by the task of cleaning up the place though. This makes the malicious part of Rumplestiltskin jubilant.

They finished the tour of one half of the castle and as they reach the second staircase, the Dark One turned to his maid.  
"This is the West Wing." He motioned towards the staircase behind him. "It is **absolutely** forbidden. No exceptions." As he spoke, he invaded Belle's personal space. The sudden ominous look in his eyes made her flinch.

In the little time she'd known her new master, she'd never witnessed such hostility and seriousness from him. Almost as soon as it appeared, it disappeared from his face. "Cheer up, my dear. I've halved your work load!"

Dubious of his sudden change in persona, she uneasily thanked him before they make their way back into the dinning hall.

Rumplestiltskin sat in the only chair at the end of the long table, the image of pure isolation. Belle awkwardly stood beside him, uncertain what to do next.  
"What are you waiting for?" He began tapping his hand on the table's surface. "Pour me some tea." She looked around the room for anything resembling a tea set. "Oh, right." Having realized there wasn't any tea for her to pour, he swung his hand about and a tray with all the tea necessities appeared on a little table in the corner of the room.

Once Belle picked up the tray and headed back towards the dining table, Rumplestiltskin filled the uncomfortable silence with the tasks she was supposed to complete in her time at the Dark Castle.

"You'll serve me at meals and clean the Dark Castle."

She placed the tea tray at the edge of the table. "I understand."  
"You will dust my collection and launder my clothing." Rumplestiltskin had noticed Belle took an eye to all his 'souvenirs' and thought polishing them would be something she'd actually be interested in doing.  
She nods, barely looking up at him. "Yes."

When she attempted to poor the tea into a cup, it was as clear as day that she was terrified of making a mistake.

"You'll bring me fresh straw when I'm spinning at the wheel." There has to be something he can do to calm her down, ' _At this rate she'll pour all the tea on the floor before handing it over.'_

"Got it." She nervously said, faltering under his gaze.  
"Oh, and you'll skin the children I hunt for their pelts." That outta make her laugh. Even he had heard the rumors that were being spread about him, as wrong as they were, the imp found it all to be rather amusing.

It didn't make her laugh. She jumped and dropped the tea on the floor. Fear struck her face like a killing blow. Rumplestiltskin grimaced at her, attempting to liven the mood. "That one was a quip. Not serious."

At his mockery, she exhaled and visibly relaxed. All had gone according to plan.

That is until she bent down to pick up the fallen teacup and panic took her over once more. "I'm- I'm so sorry, it's umm, it's… chipped."

After his effort to make her relax, he was a tad annoyed that this damned cup put them right back at square one. ' _What is she worried about?_ '

"You can hardly see it-" She tries to explain, his eyes starring down at her.

"Well, it's just a cup."

Her lips turned into a faint smile as she tried to gather her substantial courage and got up off the floor.

Rumplestiltskin amusingly leant back in his chair, basking in his success. ' _What an odd one this Belle is_ ,' he thought as she bowed politely and left the room, completely forgetting to hand him his cup of tea.

 **Author's Note:** **  
A pit of a long one this one, oh how I spoil you!**

 **How could I not make this one a long one though, this was the moment all Rumbelle fans expect and damn well deserve! Hope I did it justice! Leave a review to let me know what you thought of it, I would love to hear from you!  
Thank you so much for reading xox**


	8. Chapter 8: The Slip

**Chapter 8: The Slip**

Rumplestiltskin raised himself from his chair and made his way towards the tea tray. He picked up the empty cup that Belle had dropped and ran his thumb along the chip, a gentle smile gracing his lips.

The door to the kitchen opened and Belle came stumbling out.  
"I am so, so sorry. I'll serve you your-" She stopped dead in her tracks when she saw Rumplestiltskin serving his own tea.  
"That's quite alright, Dearie. I am perfectly capable of pouring my own tea. I trust you can succeed in not dropping Supper, hmm?" He was unusually tame in his mockery.

"Yes." She bowed really low then headed towards the kitchen door once again, an embarrassed blush appearing on her cheeks.

Rumplestiltskin stood there a moment sipping his tea as he pondered over her cooking abilities. ' _She's bound to poison me'_ he concluded as he placed down the cup on the tray and vanished from the dining hall.

Belle was kneeling on a counter top, her balance shifting too and fro like a flagpole in the wind. She was reaching up for a pot on a higher shelf when Rumplestiltskin appeared in the room.

His sudden appearance in the room caused her to loose balance and her knee slid off the counter. The air caught in her chest and her eyes closed as she waited for the inevitable pain to come.

The pain didn't come. Instead, she felt the grip of hands on her waist. Rumplestiltskin had caught her. She could feel his chest on her back as the angle of the fall caused her to press up against him.

Cheek-to-cheek with the Dark One, Belle would have died of embarrassment if she weren't distracted by how gently his hands were holding onto her hips and how his breath had hitched when their cheeks had brushed.

Rumplestiltskin's heart was beating so heavily, he wondered if she could feel it against her shoulder blades. He needed to stop thinking about her shoulders and her back and her breathing and scented hair and- "Th-Thank you." Belle's timid words snapped him out of his trance.

He uncomfortably settled her down on the kitchen floor, his embarrassment hidden under his mockery.  
"If you have a death wish, Dearie, may I suggest you try taking a short walk of a long peer." He used his fingers to mimic a person walking off the edge of a cliff.

"I don't have a death wish." She retorted. "If you would stop appearing out of nowhere like that and scaring me half to death-"  
"I am scary." He was surprised how painful that was to say. "Good of you to notice." Those last words were calmer, regretful. They left his lips as if he were admitting a deep, dark secret.

It struck something inside of Belle and she backed down from her defensive pose. "I won't climb up on the counters any longer, Master."

 **Author's Note:**

 **I absolutely loved writing this small, intimate moment between the blossoming lovebirds.**

 **Let me know if you think I am perhaps going a little too fast and breaking the marvelously created character that is Rumplestiltskin.**

 **I am swiftly moving on from the TV show moments now and progressing their romance in my own way, I hope you enjoyed! Thanks for reading! xox**


	9. Chapter 9: Her Name

**Chapter 9: Her Name**

She had called him 'Master'. Rumplestiltskin couldn't decide whether he liked this new title or not. He had been called many things as the centuries came and went: Crocodile, Monster, Dark One, Imp… Beast, but 'Master' was new. It wasn't insulting. In fact it was relatively respectful for a being of his stature. There wasn't a reason for him to feel undeserving of the title, but he did nonetheless.

Choosing to not dwell on that thought any longer, his attention went back to his maid. She was learning her way around the kitchen, her shoes tapping against the stone floor as she fumbled with numerous pots and pans on various shelf units.

Rumplestiltskin noticed she wouldn't go near the ones on the upper shelf units out of her reach. He wondered if she'd attempt to climb back up when he left the room. Concluding she most likely would and couldn't be trusted otherwise, the Dark One perched himself up on a shelf in the corner of the large kitchen and observed her as she worked.

"If you're so adamant on being here, you could help." Her frustration was audible. She was attempting to reach a sizeable pot but alas found herself a few inches short.

"There's no fun in that, Dearie." Despite his words, he materialized a stepladder next to the furnaces behind her. "Besides, I am only making sure you don't poison me."

She turned towards him, offended by his comment but he pointed to the stepladder, which distracted her. A timid but knowing smile graced her lips as she picked it up and took it across the room.

Rumplestiltskin couldn't look away as she climbed the ladder. She was so graceful in her movements and as she stretched out to reach the pot, he could see how her beautiful golden dress curved around her bosom, accenting her curves. He lost himself to her momentarily.

Realizing how inappropriate he was being, he snapped out of it.  
"It seems you have everything under control here." His voice sounded hoarse as he jumped down from the shelf. "I expect it to be cooked by sunset!" He childishly shrieked as he headed towards the door. "Oh, and Belle?" She turned to him. "Try not to poison me." She smiled, the first honest smile he'd ever seen her make towards him. He found it enchanting.

It took him the walk back to the dining hall for him to realize what he had done. Her name sounded harsh to his lips, such a beautiful name shouldn't be uttered by such a monster. He would have regretted doing it if it weren't for the smile he had received in return.

There was time before sunset, Rumplestiltskin made his way to his beloved spindle and began spinning once again. He was determined to get at least some work done before dinner.

Useless, it was absolutely useless. Rumplestiltskin was beginning to regret bringing such a woman into his castle. He was wasting precious time, there was so much to do before Regina activated the Dark Curse but he couldn't for the life of him think about anything other than the lady cooking him dinner.

 **Author's Note:** **  
Hope you enjoyed the last 9 chapters, Readers!  
Unfortunately I won't be releasing anymore for another few days, but they are coming! Please follow if you'd like to get notified when I next post. Thank you so much for reading xox**


	10. Chapter 10: The Spoon

**Chapter 10: The Spoon**

The sun set over the horizon. Or at least that's what Rumplestiltskin assumed was happening, because Belle made her way into the dining hall with a plate in her hands. She stood there a moment, unsure where to place the plate. 'Should I take it to him at the spinning wheel or leave it for him at the table?' She wondered.

"On the table, Dear." Rumplestiltskin rose from his stool at the spinning wheel and strutted towards the dining table. He reached his dining chair at almost the exact time Belle made it there herself.

She placed the dish onto the table and curtsied to her master. "Without poison, as requested."

"I'll be the judge of that, Dearie!" He placed his forefinger into the sauce and ran it across the plate before bringing it up and into his mouth. She nervously watched him, he wasn't exactly being gentlemanly but he was her master and she had never cooked a meal from scratch alone before. It wasn't unusual that she would want to please him, was it?

As the flavours passed over his tongue, he attempted to make out any unusual tastes that could prove fatal. He didn't really believe she could have found anything in that kitchen that would kill him, but he did enjoy watching the worried expression on her face grow as he took his time judging her cooking skills.

He swallowed, which made her visibly relax. She let out a large sigh of relief, which proved to be a bit premature because Rumplestiltskin threw his head back and began laughing. His laughter grew into a hysterical fit of giggles. The sound and sight of this All Fearful Dark One almost brought to tears from the hilarity of the situation made Belle chuckle along besides him, even if she was a tad offended.

Once he began calming down, Belle's curiosity got the best of her, "What was wrong with it?" She wasn't upset, and the imp could tell she wanted to know for educational purposes.

"My, my, my. That has got to be the _worst_ flavour I have ever had the misfortune of swallowing." He wiped a tear from his eye as he spoke and sat up in his chair, recomposing himself.

"Well, don't hold back for my sake." His maid responded with an attitude of sarcasm, trying to make light of this embarrassing situation.

"Salt. Far to much salt, my dear." He swished his wrist over the dish and a ball of smoke engulfed it. When the smoke dispersed, he handed her his spoon. "Try it now."

She abided his demand and scooped up a spoonful of the sauce and placed it into her mouth. He watched as her eyes opened wide in disbelief. "You're right. It's much better now."

"I usually am, Dearie. Best get use to it." Belle nodded before curtsying once more and turning to leave. "Not so fast, dear." She stopped and faced him once again. He has his hand out, demanding something from her. "My spoon."

"Oh, well, I was going to get you another." She motioned towards the kitchen as she explained herself.

"No need, it'll do just fine." His folded his fingers in a grabbing motion, signaling her to place the spoon into his hand. She quizzically handed him the piece of cutlery and watched as he began using it, not fazed at all.

After a few mouthfuls, Rumplestiltskin turned to face her. "Off you pop, dear. I'm sure there are dishes for you to clean. Chop, chop." He shooed her away with his hands.

Belle walked away, forgetting her manners this time, completely confused by his actions. 'It wouldn't have taken me long to get a new spoon, perhaps he was just hungry.'

 **Author's Note:**

 **I'm not too sure about this chapter, I liked where it started but grew unsure as to what Belle's reaction should have been to the spoon. I didn't think she would have blushed, for a royal, she should have found that attitude disgusting. I went for an in-between, she wasn't disgusted, but it didn't make her blush, just confused. Hope you enjoyed. Let me know your view on it if you'd like.**

 **Thank you!**


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